Sikh store owner goes viral on social media for confronting an armed robber attempting to steal a trash can full of cigarettes at a 7-Eleven in California.

The viral incident: In a video circulating on social media, a thief with his face covered by a blue cloth can be seen rummaging through the store's shelves and tossing tobacco products into a large garbage bin. When the store owner tries to intervene and threatens to call the police, the thief, who has a knife in his pocket, warns him to step back.

The person recording the incident from behind a plastic partition also tells the store owner not to intervene. "Just let him go. There's nothing you can do. They're not going to do anything," he says before asking if the owner has insurance.

As the robber tries to leave, a store employee grabs his arms while the store owner strikes the man with a stick, delivering more than 20 blows to his body despite the man's pleas for mercy.